Just a Fling
by Les Dilettantes
Summary: Ron is not utterly in love with Hermione. Really, he's not! He's just- having a fling with her, that's all. That's all they're having...or is it? Major RWHG fluff.


**Disclaimer: **All characters and scenarios established are the property of JK Rowling. No profit was made on this work.

**A/N: **Hi! I'm Sarah, from the fabulous writing duo, Sarah and Alex. I don't really have an account of my own, so I'll just post this story here and hope that Alex is merciful. I'm a bit embarrassed that I wrote this, because I promised myself that I wouldn't write any more Ron/Hermione stories (I wrote a few under another shared account, Hydrangea777). However, the plot bunny for this story sort of attacked me in the middle of the night and wouldn't let me be until I had written this. So, I hope you enjoy, and please give me some feedback if you can!

**Just A Fling**

"There is no other explanation for this," Ron stated furiously, pounding his fist on the table for emphasis, "I must be under a spell!"

Instead of being shocked and angered by the revelation, Harry Potter merely looked confused. "Why, Ron?" he asked, raking a hand through his hair distractedly, "I didn't notice anything unusual about you, today. And why are you talking to me about this? Shouldn't you talk to Herm-" He was rudely cut off when Ron clamped a freckled hand over his mouth.

"_Shh_!" Ron hissed, "Do you want her to hear us? And the spell involves her, that's why!" He paused to glance furtively in Hermione's direction. She didn't seem to have noticed anything, as she was absorbed in yet another book. Ron watched her frown in concentration as she read, a few toffee-colored curls escaping from her tight ponytail. She bit her lip impatiently, sweeping the curls behind one ear. Ron noted absently that they were very pretty curls. And very pretty lips, too. Surprisingly pink and full, and-

Ron's thoughts were prevented from entering into more dangerous territory by a quiet snicker. Snapping out of his near-trance, he glared at Harry. Harry grinned back at him unrepentantly, amusement lurking in his eyes. "I don't know Ron, you certainly seem like you want to be with her," he noted mock-innocently.

"But that's what I want to talk to you about!" Ron cried despairingly, "This has been happening to me for weeks! I can't stop thinking about Hermione! Every time I see Hermione I go all- funny," he finished lamely.

Harry's amusement vanished, and was immediately replaced by sheer incredulity. "You mean you haven't figured out what it is yet?" he asked disbelievingly. Ron shook his head emphatically, and Harry sighed. "All right," he began, in a patient voice, as though he was addressing an unusually dull mountain troll, "Have you thought about why you feel this way? Do you think that your feelings towards Hermione have - _changed _in any way over the past year?"

"Yes!" Ron shouted, oblivious to the attention he was attracting, "Malfoy must have put a spell on me to make me feel this way, to...to make me off-balance and confused during the Quidditch Finals! Or maybe Snape did it," he added as an afterthought, "Snape could have slipped something in my potion to make-" he broke off as Harry began banging his head against the table repeatedly. "I say, Harry, is anything the matter?"

Harry glared at Ron exasperatedly. "Ron," he pronounced, "You are truly pathetic." "Then _what is going on?_" Ron asked in desperation. Hermione smiled at him as she passed their table on the way to the library. Harry shook his head as Ron stared at her in a besotted manner for several minutes. Finally recalling the conversation, Ron turned back to Harry. "What was I saying?"

Giving up, Harry stood up abruptly. "Figure it out for yourself. And just tell her," he said, heading upstairs. "Oh, and don't forget," he added, switching into Quidditch Captain Mode, "There's an important match tomorrow, so make sure you get some sleep."

Ron stared at his friend's retreating back. "Tell her _what_?"

-ooOoo-

"And here's the Gryffindor team!" Colin Creevey's voice echoed throughout the stadium. Ron gulped nervously and mounted his broom as the Gryffindor team prepared to make their entrance. "Weasley! Bell! MacDonald! Kirke! Sloper! Weasley! _Aaand_...Potter!"

The Gryffindor team flew into the stadium, lead by Harry. Ron scanned the crowd nervously, instinctively searching for Hermione. "As you all know," Colin continued in his magically magnified voice, "Harry Potter has just been elected as the new Gryffindor Team Captain. Let's see if he's up to the job! Personally, I think that he will do excellently, as he is absolutely wonderful! I mean, he's defeated You-Know-Who!" Harry's cheeks flamed with embarrassment. Apparently Colin still hadn't gotten over his crush on the Golden Boy.

"Creevey!" McGonagall snapped. "Er, sorry, Professor, just giving my, er, professional opinion on Harry...okay! And here come the Ravenclaw team," Colin cried, "Introducing...Turpin! Patil! Brocklehurst! Corner! Boot! Ackerley! _Aaand_...Chang!

Once again, Ron thanked his lucky stars that he did not have to play against the Slytherins. To Malfoy's infinite horror, Slytherin had lost the qualifying match against Ravenclaw, and had taken themselves out of the running. Snape had been raging for days.

The teams took their positions. Harry and Cho exchanged death glares. Ron grinned, despite his nervousness. Looking at them, one could never guess that they once dated. Madam Hooch stepped up to the center of the field, an oak box clutched tightly under her arm. She unlatched and opened the lid, and the glittering Snitch flew out into the field. Picking up the brilliantly red Quaffle, she flung it into the air. The game had begun.

"And they're off!" Colin shouted, nearly wetting himself in his enthusiasm, "Lisa Turpin is diving for the ball and-oh! Ginny Weasley snatched it from her just in time! The Gryffindors made a wise decision when they chose her for Chaser! She just tossed it to MacDonald, she's aiming for the goals....but Padma Patil intercepts it!"

A sickening crack reverberated around the stadium. Ron winced. The Bludgers had been released. Padma Patil continued on her path towards him. Andrew Sloper hit a Bludger in her direction, but she dodged it easily. She flung the ball towards the goal posts. Ron tensed, flung himself in front of the ball...and missed.

"Patil scores! 10-0 to Ravenclaw!" Colin shouted. Ron groaned aloud. Already the game was off to a bad start. Hopefully, things would get better as the game progressed.

His hopes were dashed. "And Ravenclaw has scored yet another goal!" Colin shouted for the 10th time that day. Judging by the murderous looks he was receiving from his teammates, Ron would end up dead in a ditch if this kept up.

A flash of curly brown hair caught his eye, and he turned to see Hermione in the stands. To his surprise, she smiled and him, hope and desperation evident in her eyes. Ron gritted his teeth. They would win this game, for Gryffindor's sake. For Hermione's sake.

He scanned the field. Mandy Brocklehurst zoomed towards him, the Quaffle clutched tightly in her arm. Ron swerved on his broomstick, racing to block her shot. His heart sank as he realized that she was too far below him. In desperation, he flung himself down, hanging on his broomstick by one arm. To his great surprise, he felt the Quaffle rebound off his arm and back into the field. The crowd cheered wildly, several people waving Gryffindor flags. "An excellent use of the Starfish and Stick maneuver by Ron Weasley, there!" Colin shouted, voice slightly muffled by his ecstatic hopping up-and-down.

Ron sagged forward in relief. _'Maybe I'm not doomed after all'_

"Yes indeed, this is a great turnaround for Gryffindor!" Colin beamed, "Patil's in possession of the ball, she's going to the goals. This may not end well. Kirke's thrown a Bludger at her! Yes-she's lost control of the ball, and MacDonald has caught it!" Natalie raced towards the Ravenclaw-guarded goalposts. Lisa Turpin lunged forward and blocked her path. She quickly threw the ball to Ginny, who flung it towards the posts. Taken aback, Ackerley, the Ravenclaw Keeper, made a feeble attempt at blocking the Quaffle, but it soared out of his reach.

"And Gryffindor scores for the first time tonight!" Colin shouted, as the crowd roared its approval. "But wait- Harry Potter seems to be attacking the Ravenclaw Beater!" Startled, Ron glanced in Harry's direction. Sure enough, Harry was speeding towards a petrified Boot. '_Wha...?"_ he thought, stopping dead in his tracks, _'Has Harry lost his marbles now, of all times?"_ Cho Chang changed course and began hurtling towards Terry as well. Suddenly, Ron understood. Harry must have spotted the Snitch! He smirked. Cho was in trouble.

All play stopped as the two seekers flew recklessly towards the unfortunate Beater. As he approached, Harry snatched the Snitch from behind Terry's ankle and veered away, narrowly missing colliding with him. Cho was not so lucky. She smashed headfirst into Terry Boot, causing them to wobble dizzily in midair and fall to the ground.

"And Harry Potter has caught the Snitch!" Colin shouted, "Gryffindor wins 160-100 and has won the House Cup once again!" The crowd screamed delightedly as Harry did a victory lap of the stadium, Snitch grasped in his hand. Madam Pomfrey thoroughly examined the fallen Ravenclaws, before pronouncing them unharmed. "Party in the Gryffindor Common Room!" Katie shouted, and a crowd of Gryffindors followed her back to the tower, hoisting Harry, holding the Quidditch Cup aloft, onto their shoulders.

Ron watched the ecstatic crowd happily. He began following them, when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around to face Hermione, gazing at him with a soft smile on her face. He felt his heart flutter strangely, and made a mental note to visit Madam Pomfrey later.

Hermione's smile grew more uncertain. "I-I know Harry was the one who caught the Snitch," she began haltingly, "But I think that you are the real winner." She stared at the ground, blushing furiously.

At that point, Ron went temporarily insane, and kissed her. She stiffened in surprise for a moment, and then relaxed, kissing him back with enthusiasm. '_This is definitely more fun than I thought it would be. Am I still under a spell?,'_ he thought vaguely.

Then he came back to his senses. He pulled away from the kiss, gasping, and began slowly backing away. Hermione stared at him, the color on her cheek even more pronounced than before. "Ron, what's wrong?" Ron shook his head, "Hermione, we're friends, we can't do this!" Hermione opened her mouth to speak, but he cut her off, "What if this- whatever it is- ends, and then we can't even speak to each other any more. I've seen my brothers with their ex-girlfriends. It is not a pretty sight. Now do you understand?" he begged.

He fully expected Hermione to scream, cry, attack him, or all three, but she merely stood there on the pitch, frowning thoughtfully. "Well," she said, hesitatingly, "Why don't we just say that this um, relationship isn't serious? We can just have a 'fling' of sorts." Ron smiled delightedly. "Yes," he repeated slowly, "We're having a fling." They kissed again, ignoring the crowd of people surrounding them.

And so it began.

-ooOoo-

"Let me get this straight," Harry said, eyeing his friends skeptically, "You're having a 'fling'. This isn't a real relationship. You are just in it for the...er, physical benefits." Ron nodded. "That about describes it." Harry looked at him disbelievingly, "But why?" he shouted, frustration plain on his face, "You're Ron and Hermione! You're perfect for each other. You've been half in love with each other since Second Year!" Ron's ears turned as red as his hair, but he remained stubborn. "That doesn't make a difference, Harry," he repeated firmly.

Harry made a noise similar to that of a wet thumb placed on a hot stove (1). "Hermione, surely you don't approve of this," he said desperately, turning to her. "Harry, it was my idea in the first place," Hermione said calmly. Harry stared at her incredulously. "Hermione, not you too!" he moaned, and stormed out of the Common Room.

Ron and Hermione quietly watched him leave. "You know," Ron remarked, "You'd think that after defeating You-Know-Who, he wouldn't get upset about little things like this." Hermione laughed and stood on tiptoes to kiss him on the cheek. "An excellent idea, Hermione," Ron said, brightening immediately. "Let's snog."

-ooOoo-

Ron tapped his foot impatiently on the floor of Hermione's London flat. "Hermione!" he shouted in the general direction of her room, "Are you ready _yet_? We're going to be late to the reunion at this rate." "Almost done, Ron! Half a second!" Came the slightly muffled reply. Ron sighed, and flopped himself into an armchair to wait.

"There, I'm ready. Happy now?" Hermione said, entering the room. Ron's jaw dropped. She looked absolutely gorgeous in an elegant gown of midnight-blue satin with a silver locket as her only jewelry. Ron leered at her good-naturedly. "On the other hand, why don't we just stay here?" he asked, kissing her neck. Hermione laughed and swatted him away. "Come now, Ron, I want to get there in time for Dumbledore's speech," she said. Ron pouted for a moment, but obeyed. He took her hand, and they both Apparated towards Hogwarts.

Hermione sighed with happiness as they entered the magnificent Great Hall. "This place hasn't changed at all," she said, gazing at the starlit ceiling, "Can you believe that it's been five years since we last came here?"

"Well, well. Look who's stayed together for seven years," a male voice teased. They turned around to find Seamus, Dean, and Harry grinning at them mischievously. Ron laughed nervously. "Well, it's been a particularly long-lived fling," Harry shook his head. "You two will never learn," he said amusedly, "You were the most faithful couple at Hogwarts. You were always together. You acted like you were bloody married! Every person in Hogwarts, myself included, was convinced that you were in love. And yet you still insist that you're only having a 'fling'. Merlin." The couple in question blushed furiously, to the amusement of their friends.

Suddenly, a loud bang echoed throughout the Hall. Ron brightened. "Fred and George must have set off fireworks, just like they promised!" he said excitedly, "Let's go see." The former Hogwarts students eagerly rushed outside. Weasleys' Wild-Fire Whiz-Bangs had become the most popular firecrackers in England, and were definitely a sight worth seeing. Ron and Hermione began following the others, but before they reached the Quidditch Pitch, Ron pulled Hermione aside and led her to a quiet corner of the grounds.

At her questioning look, Ron colored and shuffled his feet. "I've been meaning to tell you this for some time now," he mumbled. Hermione stiffened. "You want to break up with me, don't you?" she asked tightly. Ron shook his head emphatically. "No, no!" he said hastily, "It's just that I erm-" Giving up on speech, he pulled a small box out of his pocket. He opened it, revealing a ring with a small, sparkling diamond set in it. "Hermione, will you marry me?"

Hermione grew very pale. "Ron, I thought that you didn't want us to have a real relationship," she said quietly, moonlight glinting off of her, bathing her in an ethereal light. "Well, er," Ron stumbled, "We can still have a fling and be married, right?" Hermione merely looked at him. "Right?" he asked desperately. A smile lit up her face. "Of course, Ron!" she cried, and flung herself into his arms. A score of Weasleys' Wild-Fire Whiz-Bangs lit up the sky as they kissed. For perhaps the first time in his life, Ron was grateful to Fred and George.

-ooOoo-

"And that is how your father and I decided to marry," Hermione finished. Ron smiled at her. After ten years of marriage, she still seemed like the most beautiful woman in the world.

"Oh, Mum, that was so romantic!" Anna sighed. Her six-year-old brother looked at her disgustedly. "I thought that it was awful," Robert said, screwing up his face, "All that romance and mushy stuff! Although the Quidditch scene was really great," he added grudgingly.

Ron laughed. "Maybe you'll learn to appreciate that 'mushy stuff' when you're older," he said, "Now it's time for bed. Don't forget to brush your teeth." Yawning, the two children shuffled upstairs. Ron put his arm around Hermione, and they headed to their bedroom.

"Hermione?"

"Yes, Ron?"

"We're not really having a fling anymore, are we?"

_Soft laughter. A kiss. _

"Do you think that we ever were?"

**The End**

(1) This line was taken from the excellent book Pigs Might Fly, written by PG Wodehouse.

**A/N: **For a one-shot, that took me a ridiculously large amount of time and research to complete. I hope that you liked it. This story is dedicated to my dear cousin "Nymphadora Bulstrode", an aspiring fan fiction writer, who has proved to be of invaluable help in writing the Quidditch scene. Now please give me some feedback, I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks for reading! -Sarah


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